Sucker-Punched On SEPTA

So maybe a few people are curious about what happened the other night, although you wouldn't know it by the number of responses I got on Twitter and Facebook. Last week I was helping my friend Kurt pack his things in semi-orderly fashion so he could move on Friday, so I was at his place a few times during the week. On Thursday night I caught the bus from South Philly to Market Street to catch the Market-Frankford El at 8th. I was lucky in that I managed to catch both the bus and the El with little or no waiting. Or so I thought.

I was standing next to the doors on the opposite side of the doors that opened to the platform, because there were few seats available and I was carrying a laundry bag with some stuff in it, and I didn't want the bulky bag on my lap or disturbing the person next to me. So there I stood, reading the paper.

There were 2 or 3 young black guys -- teenagers or a little older -- in the seats on the same side as where I was standing. They got up as if they were getting out around the York-Dauphin station, but instead stood near the doors, and then were joined by another couple of guys who arrived from the next car. The train arrived at the Allegheny station at almost 8:35 pm, and they all left the train except the guy directly in front of me, who stayed on and had his arms outstretched as his hands were on both poles by the doors.

There was a brief delay for some reason -- the train's conductor later said he thought the others were holding the door open -- and then, just as the computer voice began to announce "Doors are closing,"

Wayne Simmonds Joins DeSean On My Dislike List

It looks like I'm down to two Philadelphia teams now. Granted, I'm not much of a fan of the NBA but I still root for the Sixers. But the NBA is in a lockout that seems to have no end in sight. That leaves the Phillies, who tied their franchise record with 101 wins, with one more game to try and break it before they begin postseason play on Saturday.

But wait -- what about the Flyers and the Eagles?

I've discussed my Eagles conundrum regarding DeSean Jackson enough times. If it weren't already obvious that neither the team nor the NFL plan to do anything about Jackson's anti-gay slur, it became a given when reports surfaced that the NFL and its players agreed that only eight players were subject to suspensions for actions that occurred during the lockout. So right now, for all I care Jackson can take his non-apology and go to hell, sans contract extension. And the Eagles, for all their arrogance in just about everything they do, can do the same. I have yet to wear an Eagles t-shirt or jersey this season -- that used to be standard practice on game days. I will still watch the games. I will not at this point root against them, but right now I can't root for them either. So their falling to 1-2 and last place in the NFC East after an absurdly lame defensive and coaching performance Sunday against the New York Giants didn't really bother me much.

The Flyers situation I'm faced with is a bit worse in two respects.

Mr. Ignorant (Note: some NSFW language)

I had a little run-in on the subway today.

After softball practice I made my way to the Temple campus and hung out for a while with my friend Kurt and a friend of his. After we parted ways, I took the subway back into Center City to make my way home. It was a bit crowded, being a Saturday afternoon and with some people beginning to make their way to the 4 p.m. Phillies game, so I didn't get a seat. I was standing near the door, then moved away from it a bit when we got to the next station and more people were about to get on. Suddenly I felt my backpack being shoved into me. I turned around and the angry black man standing there began yelling. The conversation, such as it was, went like this:

"MOVE YOUR FUCKING BACKPACK."
"Oh, sorry -- "
"I DON'T WANT TO TALK TO YOU, JUST MOVE YOUR BACKPACK."
"Did it brush into you?"
"YEAH. MOVE YOUR FUCKING BACKPACK"
"I'm sor--"
"I DON'T WANT TO TALK, JUST MOVE YOUR FUCKING BACKPACK."

At that point I just moved away. I wanted to tell him he needed to learn to accept an apology but I knew if I said anything more, the situation would escalate.

First of all, if my backpack brushed against him I didn't feel it. Normally, the backpack is up against my back and if it bumps into something I feel it. I felt nothing until he shoved it.

Secondly, this is why racism will continue to exist in this country for a long, long time. This asshole was so rude and ignorant that if it had been someone else instead of me, either there would have been a fight and a bunch of n-words dropped, or even if that didn't happen, the other person would have basically confirmed to himself all of his bigoted views. Sure, we've made plenty of progress, but as long as people act like this, those who are prejudiced will not change their minds.

While I do sort of believe in good karma -- if you're a good person and are good to others, I like to think you'll get good karma back from the universe -- I have no problem wishing ill of nasty, hateful trolls. So this is my message for Mr. Ignorant from the subway: you are a fucking miserable, rude, obnoxious, ignorant and possibly racist piece of garbage. You're scum. You're a waste of DNA. If you die tomorrow, the world will be a better place.

Oh, and for fuck's sake, before you die, PULL UP YOUR PANTS! YOU'RE NOT A TEENAGER AND NO ONE WANTS TO SEE YOUR DULL GRAY UNDERWEAR!